Landslides, floods kill 35 on Indonesia’s Java island

JAKARTA, Indonesia – At least 35 people have been killed by landslides and floods on Indonesia’s Java island and many others are missing, an official said Sunday.

Dozens of houses were buried in the landslides and thousands of homes were inundated by floods in 16 districts and towns in Central Java province over the weekend.

The spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, said that 25 villagers were still missing in the worst-hit district of Purworejo, where 19 people died.

He said seven people were killed in Kebumen district and six in Banjarnegara district, and one each in three other districts.

The dead included two 10-year-olds and a pregnant woman.

“A total of 31 people were killed under landslides, while four were swept away and killed by flooding,” Nugroho said in a statement.

Rescue workers including soldiers, police and volunteers were still searching for victims.

Most of the flooding has receded, but residents in affected areas were encouraged to remain vigilant because heavy rains were predicted to continue until Monday.

Seasonal rains often cause flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or flood-prone plains close to rivers.